Friday, December 13, 2013

Warren County: Part of the Hopewell Interaction Sphere

This week’s journey by county through
the archaeology of Pennsylvania takes us to northwestern Pennsylvania and Warren
County. This county is situated in the High Plateau section and the
Northwestern Glaciated section of the Appalachian Plateaus Physiographic
Province. The region is characterized by rolling uplands and steep valleys. The
northwestern half of the county was glaciated and exhibits glacial features
such as terminal moraines, kettle lakes, swamps and kame terraces. The Allegheny
River cuts through the middle of the county and the major tributaries are Brokenstraw
Creek and Conewango Creek.

Warren County was first occupied by
Europeans in the 1740s. Initially, the French claimed the region and documented
their claim with a series of lead plates buried in the ground that stretched
from the City of Warren down the Mississippi Valley. After the French and
Indian War, the British took over and finally the Americans incorporated the
land into the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Early on, the major industry was
lumber but the discovery of oil in the 1870’s replaced the logging industry.
Residents of the county prospered in the 19th century but by the
middle of the 20th century the economy was on the decline. A large
section of Warren County is in the Allegheny National Forest and is reserved
for recreation, lumbering and the gas industry.

The density of sites (at 1 site per
1.97 square miles) is relatively high especially compared to other counties in
the northern part of the Commonwealth. There are concentrations of prehistoric
sites along the Allegheny River, at the mouth of the Brokenstraw for example,
but numerous sites have also been recorded in the uplands. Many of these are
rockshelters and 28% of all sites in the county fit this category. Allegheny
National Forest has their own crew of archaeologists and while conducting
surveys in preparation for logging and gas projects, they have recorded many of
these sites.

The most commonly used lithic
material by prehistoric peoples in making stone tools is chert (43%) and 42% of
the sites reporting lithic material specify Onondaga chert. The Onondaga
formation is located in a band extending from Ontario across New York State
approximately 100 miles (160 km) to the north. This is a high quality and
distinctive lithic type that was used throughout prehistory. It is assumed that
Native Americans directly procured this chert from bedrock sources but there is
also ample evidence that they used pebbles and cobbles that were washed into
the region by rivers or pushed into the region by the glaciers.

Although the Allegheny National Forest
archaeologists have conducted the most extensive surveys in the county, there
have been several other major surveys. The regional archaeological survey
program which was conducted between 1979 and 1981 included Warren County and
documented many new sites but was especially productive in updating information
on existing sites. For example the complex of sites known as the Buckaloons was
proposed as a National Register Historic District but has yet to be nominated.
This track of land contains several sites at the mouth of the Brokenstraw Creek
that include occupations from small Paleoindian camps to Late Prehistoric
villages and several Hopewell mounds.

Sugar Run Mound excavation

Warren County contains at least eight
burial mounds dating to the Middle Woodland period and several of these were
tested in 1941 by the Pennsylvania Historical Commission under the direction of
Edmund S. Carpenter and Wesley Bliss. This was part of the Civilian Conservation
Corps (CCC) investigation of mound and village sites in northwestern
Pennsylvania. Interestingly, the excavation of the Sugar Run Mound was
conducted by a crew of Seneca Indians from the Allegheny Reservation. The Sugar
Run Mound site (36Wa359) contained three mounds that slightly overlapped each
other. Although these had been plowed down to almost level with the current
ground surface, it was possible to determine the construction sequence of the
three. There were at least three stone lined crypts, each surrounded by a
cobble pavement. It is believed that the cobbles under Mound Unit #1 were
arranged in the shape of a raptorial bird on one side of the stone lined crypt and
in the shape of a celt on the other side.

Sugar Run Mound plan view

According to McConaughy and Johnson
(2003:114), the three mounds are separated by relatively short time intervals.
Based on the low frequency of exotic trade artifacts and the radiocarbon date
of AD 250 (uncorrected) Mound Unit #1 was the first to be constructed but this
was prior to the local population becoming involved in the Hopewell Interaction
Sphere trade network. Mounds #2 and #3 contained numerous exotic trade
artifacts such as mica, galena, marine shell, copper and Flint Ridge
chalcedony, indicating these mounds date later in time when the local
population was actively involved in the Hopewell Interaction Sphere.

According to McConaughy and Johnson
(2003:114, Sugar Run Mound is part of the Squawkie Hill phase, a local
manifestation of Hopewell. This is found at several mounds in northwestern
Pennsylvania notably Nelson (36Cw58), Irvine (36Wa251-255), Cornplanter
(36Wa242) and Corydon (36Wa1).

Finally, Warren County is the
location of the last Indian controlled track of land in Pennsylvania. This was
known as the Cornplanter Grant. Cornplanter was a Seneca chief who fought
against the United State during the Revolutionary War. However, after the war,
he encouraged peace with the United States.

Cornplanter

According to Wallace (1999:167), he
was instrumental in keeping the Iroquois out of the Miami confederacy which
defeated two American armies but was eventually routed by Anthony Wayne at the Battle
of Fallen Timbers in 1794. In response to his peace keeping efforts, Pennsylvania
awarded Cornplanter and his heirs “in perpetuity” 600 acres of land in the
Upper Allegheny Valley just south of the New York state border. This included
his town of Jenuchshadego. Initially, Cornplanter “brought in Quaker teachers,
established schools, made roads, built good houses, encouraged agriculture,
bred large herds of cattle and, in a word, turned the Cornplanter Grant into a
model community” (Wallace 1999:168). Unfortunately, at the end of his life, he
rejected all of this becoming disillusioned with his non-Indian neighbors. He
died in 1836.

The Cornplanter Grant was occupied by
his descendents and other Indians until 1964, when the remaining residents were
relocated upriver in preparation for the construction of the Kinzua Dam. Cornplanter’s
cemetery was archaeologically excavated (Abrams 1965 and Sublett 1965) and,
along with his monument also re-located. Remembering the words of the original
land grant issued by the Commonwealth “in perpetuity”, the dam project was
strongly opposed by Native Americans; however, the land was flooded in 1967.
This signaled the beginning of a revitalization of Native American culture in
America; an event that was instrumental in the formation of the American Indian
Movement. The flooding also covered numerous archaeological sites including the
Sugar Run mound discussed above.

We hope you have found this journey
through the archaeological heritage of Warren County interesting, and that you
will seek additional reading in the references provided below. Understanding and exploring our
archaeological heritage is crucial to our understanding of human behavior and
our ability to change and adapt over time - just as the peoples of Warren
County have done for thousands of years.

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One Tank Trip

WFMZ-TV 69 from Reading, Pennsylvania visited The State Museum of Pennsylvania on February 8th, 2017. Karin Mallett prepared a feature piece on great places to visit that are one tank of gas from Reading and our gallery was the focus of this visit. Karin interviewed Kurt Carr, Senior Curator and Janet Johnson in the gallery and provide a nice overview of the spectacular exhibits. Please click on the link below and enjoy this glimpse of the museum during this One Tank Trip!
One Tank Trip: Hall of Anthropology and Archaeology

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